Compressed Air Treatment Equipment Market Analysis By Product (Filters, Dryers, Aftercoolers), By End-use (Chemical, Paper, Food & Beverages, Healthcare), By Region, And Segment Forecasts, 2018 - 2025

Industry Insights

The global compressed air treatment equipment market size was valued at USD 6.29 billion in 2016. The growing usage of compressed air together with the development of novel as well as sophisticated devices used in manufacturing facilities has accelerated the need for clean air, which is subsequently expected to drive the compressed air treatment equipment market growth over the forecast period.

The compressed air leaving a compressor is not always of a quality suitable for the intended use since atmospheric air, particularly in the industrial environment, contains moisture, particulate, and hydrocarbons, which may contaminate the end product. Furthermore, the compressor itself contributes to contaminants in the form of compressor oil carryover and wear particles. The above mentioned factors are expected to drive growth for the global compressed air treatment equipment market over the forecast period.

China compressed air treatment equipment market by product, 2014 - 2025 (USD Million)

Air treatment equipment keeps the compressed air system in optimal shape and eliminates humidity. Efficient cooling and removal of humidty ensures low energy costs, thereby increasing the life of tools and equipment. The air leaving a compressor reaches 100 percent humidity, due to which the compressed air treatment equipment plays an important role in eliminating residual humidity and obtaining dry air for end use applications.

Compressed air treatment is considered to be a smart choice while investing in a compressor since these treatment equipment not only protect the system from all forms of contaminants but also improve the system efficiency and prolong system life by reducing corrosion and rust.

Product Insights

Air treatment equipment including filters and dryers emerged as the leading product category in 2016 and together accounted for over 60% of the overall revenue share in the same year. Filters are designed for high-quality filtration of compressed air used in an array of applications where air quality is of paramount importance.

The design concept for filters which is offered by several players in the market combines efficiency, high performance, ease of use, safety, and flexibility. Furthermore, the availability of high performance filters that help reduce pressure loss by approximately 40-50% is achieved through an optimized filter design paired with innovative filtration technology, which is expected to propel the product demand considerably over the next nine years.

In the dryer’s category, refrigerated air dryers emerged as the dominant segment accounting for close to USD 1,000 million in 2016. The integration of advanced sensor technology in dryers automates manufacturing as well as the quality check process and reduces direct costs. Refrigerated dryers are used to eliminate water vapor in several industrial applications, including food processing & packaging, chemical, pharmaceutical drugs, paper, and semiconductor manufacturing. Furthermore, they are also used in healthcare equipment in surgical and dental devices.

In the recent years, the industrial sector has witnessed the proliferation of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). The IIoT blurs the lines of individuality when it comes to a particular component in a system. Similarly, in refrigerated dryers, IIoT has made it possible to view the compressed air treatment system as a single unit. In the system, data collected from numerous components such as refrigerated air dryers, blowers, sensors, and so on is analyzed to give a more precise understanding of the system operation. Parker Hannifin is one of the first manufacturers of such highly-integrated compressed air treatment system.

End-use Insights

The global demand for compressed air treatment equipment has witnessed a paradigm shift due to rising consumer awareness. Food & beverage emerged as the largest end-use segment and accounted for over 25% of the total market revenue in 2016.

Global compressed air treatment equipment market by end-use, 2016 (%)

The penetration of compressed air treatment equipment as well as growth in the food & beverage sector is expected to be high owing to the growing need for clean air in numerous critical applications, namely food processing and packaging. Several new players are establishing new food & beverage industries, particularly in the U.S., which will provide avenues for growth over the forecast period.

Furthermore, food processing and pharmaceutical plants require clean rooms with zero impurities to manufacture critical products. The integration of the humidity detection system in this equipment ensures the end-product quality. Thus, the increasing application in the pharmaceutical and food processing industries is also anticipated to provide growth opportunities.

Regional Insights

Asia Pacific is expected to exhibit the highest growth followed by North America owing to the rise in the number of chemical and food & beverage industries. Dry and clean air extends machine life and leads to improved product quality, thereby reducing the maintenance cost. In the wake of these factors, there has been a surge in demand in the aforementioned industries and the trend is expected to continue over the forecast period.

The presence of water vapor is a key area of concern in the food industry as moisture brings about rapid microbial and fungal growth. Therefore, high product penetration in the food packaging industry along with a rise in the number of food processing industries in North America, Europe, and South America is expected to escalate the regional demand over the forecast period.

Europe is anticipated to experience a growth at a CAGR exceeding 5.5% from 2017 to 2025. An upsurge in demand across the medical sector provides avenues for growth. There exist several regulations pertaining to the compressed air quality used in the manufacturing processes, which is also expected to fuel the demand in Europe over the forecast period. In addition, a shift of manufacturing facilities to Eastern Europe is estimated to spur product demand over the next seven years.

Competitive Insights

The market is competitive owing to the presence of several dominant players such as Parker Hannifin Corp, Ingersoll-Rand plc, and Gardner Denver, Inc. The competitors thrive on extensive R&D and integrate several advanced technologies complementing applications across different end-use sectors.

A few players undertake vertical integration at the design and production levels to a large degree athough most manufacturers focus on only one aspect of the value chain. Furthermore, companies focus on gaining a competitive advantage by expanding their local as well as international reach. The current area of focus for several established players is to dominate the international sales network. 

Report Scope

Segments covered in the report

This report forecasts revenue growth at global, regional & country levels and provides an analysis on the industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2014 to 2025. For the purpose of this study, Grand View Research has segmented the global compressed air treatment equipment market on the basis of product, end-use and region:

• Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Million; 2014 - 2025)

  • Filters

    • Particulate filter/pre-filter

    • Coalescing filter/oil removal

    • Adsorber filter/oil vapor removal

    • Filtered centrifugal separator

    • High temperature afterfilters

    • Moisture separators

  • Dryers

    • Refrigerated dryers

    • Desiccant dryers

    • Membrane dryers

    • Deliquescent dryers

  • Aftercoolers

  • Others

• End-Use Outlook (Revenue, USD Million; 2014 - 2025)

  • Chemical

  • Paper

  • Food & beverage

  • Pharmaceutical

  • Healthcare

  • Others

• Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million; 2014 - 2025)

  • North America

    • U.S.

    • Canada

    • Mexico

  • Europe

    • Germany

    • UK

  • Asia Pacific

    • China

    • India

    • Japan

  • South America

    • Brazil

  • Middle East & Africa